Mulvey and Schroeder's theories

Mulvey was a Feminist theorist who came up with the male gaze theory, and Schroeder supports it by stating that when a man looks at a woman, it implies that there is a psychological sense of the man been superior to the woman he is looking at.

The clip from Charlie’s angels somewhat goes against the male gaze view. Charlie’s angels depicts three female secret agents which work for a man named Charlie. The film is very action packed, and the characters are depicted as being strong and independent. Although this is the case, there are a few scenes that depict women as sexual objects like the scene below

However, it can be argued that the male gaze is not represented in the scene, as it does not show any men looking at the women; therefore it can be difficult to imply that a male gaze is happening at this time. 

For the most part, the trailer depicts the angels doing things that are typically men’s activities. In one of the scenes, one of the angels is shown riding a dirt bike. She is not wearing any revealing clothes; her clothes are practical for what she is doing. The scene also doesn’t show any men looking at her in a sexual way; therefore this scene goes against Mulvey and Schroeder’s theories.

However, there is a scene that supports Mulvey and Schroeder’s theories. The scene involves one of the main female characters getting into a Ferrari, dressed in just a bikini. The editing particular implies this is intended for the sexual satisfaction of male viewers, as there are two shots of this, one of which occurs in slow motion, so that male viewers can get a longer look at the woman.

In contrast, there is a scene in which a man is being held against his will and one of the female characters comes to save him doesn’t support Mulvey and Schroeder’s views. It presents the view that women can be the strong gender, and are capable of being the ones doing the saving instead of being a damsel in distress.

As you can see, the man is not looking at her with sexual desire, but with relief as he is beings saved by her.

However, some media texts heavily present the male gaze, such as the film Bad teacher. The film centres around a misbehaving teacher who moves to a new school, and decides to raise money to get breast enhancement surgery to impress a male teacher whom she likes. The film is clearly marketed towards men, as it centres around a female character whose main goal is to improve her body. There are many shots in the trailer which present her in a sexually objectified way.

This scene clearly presents that this movie has examples of the male gaze, as she is the only thing in shot, and is wearing revealing clothing and posing in a way that is meant to attract men to look at her body.

Male Gaze

Archetype - Somebody who fits into a certain stereotype.

Charlie's angels has some examples of female empowerment; the female characters are fighting and staring in action scenes. They are seen fighting men most of the time, which contrasts from the idea of men being stronger than women.

Empowerment -

-fighting men

-Firing Guns

-Chase scenes

Women saving men - Reverse roles

-Driving a monster track/dirt bike etc.


Sexuality

- Male Boss

-Surfing in a bikini

-women dancing on stage in revealing clothes

-Innuendoes

Propp's Character Theory - Guardians Of The Galaxy

Vladimir Propp had a theory of which characters could be found in a piece of media, which he argued could be applied to every movie. I am going to be applying Propp's theory to the film Guardians of the Galaxy.

The hero of Guardians of the Galaxy is Peter Quill/Starlord, as he is leading the group towards defeating the villian, which is Ronan the accuser as he is the one with an evil plan and is the main opposition to the hero and his side characters. The donor character is Rocket, as he supplies them with weapons and gadgets which help them on their mission. He varies from most donor characters however, as he is part of the group of heroes.

The dispatcher would be The Collector, as he is going to be sold the infinity stone by Peter, but as he is about to do it, Peter realises the stone has value. There is also a False hero character, which is Yondu, as he at first appears to care about Peter, however, the heroes realise that he justs wants the infinity stone from him to make himself rich.

All of the proclaimed Guardians of the Galaxy would fit into the role of the helper, though Drax the Destroyer stands out as a helper of the hero, as he is the muscle of the group and can fight off lots of people to defend the hero and the other helper characters. Then, there is also a character that acts as the princess, which is Gamora, as she becomes the love interest of star lord and he ends up risking his life for her.

The father character in the film is Corpsman Dey, as when they complete their mission, he wipess all their crimes off the database and appoints them official Guardians of the Galaxy.

Diegetic and Non-Diegetic Sound

The clip opens with some music, which is a an example of a non diegetic sound, as it has been added in  during editing. At the same time that the music starts, which is at 0:09, there is the sound of dust blow, which is a synchronous diegetic sound as the character sees the dust blowing in front of them.

At 0:18, a voice over begins, which is an example of an asynchronous non diegetic sound. 

At 0:42, the is the sound of a TIE fighter ship as it plummets towards a planet.

At 1:09, over the non diegetic voice over and music, we can hear the sound of ships flying, which is a synchronous diegetic sound as we can see the ships that are making the noises.

Shameless - Representation of Class

This clip from shameless depicts a very poor family, who are living on a council estate in Manchester. We can straight away tell they are from a lower class background as their accents are heavily regional. They also speak in a very informal tone, and they use slang and swearwords, which are stereotypical signs of poorer families, as they imply lack of eduction due to a lack of money. The general mood of the conversation is argumentative, which conforms to the stereotype of lower class families constantly arguing with each other. When the father gets angry, his voice becomes gruff and animalistic suggesting he can't express his anger in a creative way, as he is not well educated due to being from a poor upbringing.

We can also deduce the class of the family based on mise en scene. On their kitchen side and tables there are lots of different things scattered around in a disorganised manner. This suggests they have no been educated well on how to organise themselves. Their furniture appears very cheap and  their actual room appears very small, especially for the amount of people that live there. This could indicate that they don't have enough money to buy a house big enough for all of them. Their appearance also shows their class; the father is wearing a dirty t shirt and his hair appears to be very greasy. A few of the other family members are wearing tracksuits, which are stereotypical clothing of the lower classes.

When the father is talking, the camera will be facing him close up, so that you can see the expressions on his face. This has been done because he is the centre of attention in the scene. Most of the shots of people talking are close up shots and they often zoom in to the shot. There are a serious of canted shots when he talking about greed, which help create an atmosphere of anger. The fact that the camera isn't mounted on a dolly means the camera is slightly shaky. This could represent their rough lifestyle and unpredictable behaviour.

There has been some editing techniques used to help represent class. The colours appear very dull in the clip. This is because they have been muted through an editing software to emphasise the deprived situation and area they are living in. There are also very fast cuts between shots when he is saying "greed" which helps create a sense of anger and aggression.

Planning for Essay

Camera, sound, mise en scene, Editing
Camera
The Camera shows whoever is talking. When she is stopping her daughter going out, there is a two shot, and there is a long shot as it shows the mother's reaction as he storms up the stairs. In the dinner scene, the 180 degree rule was obeyed. When they are arguing about her going out, it does a series over  . When the girl leaves the dinner table, the camera stays fixed so you can see the whole dinner table, in order for us to see her parents reactions to what she did.


Sound
The daughter uses curse words when she is angry, showing she is reckless and can't control her emotions, which is a stereotype of of teenagers. When she leaves the dinner table, she walks away very aggressively and she also takes the bottle of wine with her. Both aggression and drinking too much are stereotypes of teenagers.


Mise en scene
In the family with the 18 year old girl, you can see that they are middle class, as they have wine at dinner, which is a stereotype of richer families. The middle class household is a lot neater, and their furniture and decoration looks very high quality, whereas the working class family's looked more average quality.

Editing





OTHER
The middle class mother is strict, and so is the working class mother, as they both think they know best for their children, meaning they are stern about their decisions. This is a stereotype of mothers. The teenage boy's body language is very relaxed and careless, which is stereotypical of teenagers.



REPRESENTATION OF CLASS - SHAMELESS

Camera
When the father is talking, there are close up shots of him, so that you can see his expressions close up. When somebody is talking, there is often a zoom into a close up. There was some canted shots as he was talking about greed. There is a slight shaky cam throughout, to present tension. It also reflects their lifestyle, which seems to be disorganised and




sound
They speak in a very regional accent, and their tone is very informal, indicating they are working class. They also use curse words, which is a stereotype of poor education. The general tone of the family discussion is argumentative, which is stereotypical of an "underclass" family. Lots of slang is used in their dialogue. When the father got angry, his voice became gruff and he sounded almost animalistic.




Mise en scene
There are lots of things on their sides and their decoration is quite messy, indicating they are poor. In their dining room, there is no wall paper, indicating low income. The furniture is cheap and the house appears small and cramped. The father is wearing a dirty t shirt and his hair looks dirty. Some of the other family members are wearing track suits.


editing

There are sudden camera cuts as he is saying "greed", which helps create an angry mood.  The camera cuts to whoever is talking so that you know who is talking. The colours may have been muted to try and create a bleak and poor atmosphere.

Todorov's theory - Maleficent

Todorov's Equilibrium and disequilibrium theory applies to the film Maleficent. In the opening scenes, an equilibrium is represent. There is peace and maleficent has her wings and is happy. At 0:15, it mentions a "vain and greedy king", which suggests that a disequilibrium may happen. From 1:35 onwards, it shows Maleficent flying around and greeting many of the other inhabitants of the land. They all greet her in a friendly manner.

These shots are helping to the appearance of an equilibrium.

In the next clip, the equilibrium is disturbed. This is what Todrov refers to as the disequilibrium. At 3:00, Maleficent awakes to find that her wings have been stolen from her. This is a disruption from her previously peaceful life. The disequilibrium also comes in the form of Maleficent turning from good to evil.

Between that clip and this clip, Maleficent transformed from a good character to an evil, villainous character. In this clip, she recognises that a disorder has occurred, and reveals that she is wants to fix it. 

At 1:40, she stands over sleeping beauty and confesses that she does not expect to be forgiven for what she did because it is unforgivable. She also shows some intentions of bringing back her equilibrium, as she swears that sleeping beauty will be protected where she lies. 

Then, there is the final scene, in which equilibrium is restored. Maleficent has had her wings returned to her and sleeping beauty has been awakened. Maleficent has changed her ways and returned to her kingdom, which is now happy and peaceful as it was before.

Narrative - Protagonist and Antagonist

The protagonist is the main leading character in a piece of media

The Antagonist is the main character who opposes and works against the protagonist.

The protagonist of a piece of media is not always the good character, neither is the antagonist always the bad character. Whoever is been followed in the film or television show etc is described as the protagonist, and the main character who is in conflict with them in the antagonist.

Some protagonists can be described as anti-heroes. This means that instead of the norm of the protagonist being heroic, they have some dark or villain like qualities.

Foil Character

A Foil is a character, whether they are an important side character or an antagonist, whose personality contrasts to another personality, usually the protagonist. 

In Sherlock Holmes, Watson acts as a foil to Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock is very eccentric and impulsive; he will jump into situations without thinking. Watson acts as a foil character as he is very calm and collected; he will think things through before doing them and has plans for the future, unlike Sherlock who is who plans as he goes along and has no idea what he is going to do next. In the second clip, when he is seen criticising Sherlock's impulsive behaviour involving the woman he later follows. He also is confused when he sees sherlock jumping out of a window.

Breaking Bad Protagonist Analysis

Bryan Cranston's Walter White, also known as Hiesenberg is the protagonist of Breaking Bad. However, he is an anti-hero, as he is dealing drugs, which is something illegal, although he is doing it for a good cause. In the trailer, he is shown to have been diagnosed with terminal cancer, therefore he turns to cooking Crystal Meth to provide for his family. He still has some heroic or at least redeeming characteristics, as he is not proud of doing what he is doing and only plan to do it for long enough so that his family is provided for.

Captain Phillips Protagonist and Antagonist

Protagonist - Captain Phillips as he is being captured and attacked by pirates, they are the protagonists as they are opposing him. The film follows him from the beginning of the film, which is more evidence that he is the protagonist.

The protagonist of Captain Phillips is Captain Richard Phillips. Before we have even met him, we can tell he has strong leadership characteristics, based on his title of "Captain". In the trailers, he is shown telling his crew to hide and that they know the ship better than the pirates. This shows him as heroic and also as a leader to his crew. Before this, he calls the command centre and tells them pirates are coming. This shows that he is organised and can see when there is a problem and will try to fix it as soon as possible.

The antagonist of Captain Phillips is Abduwali Muse. We can see he is the antagonist as when they board the ship, he is the one who shoots the lock out to get to the cabin, and he is the one who is confronting Captain Phillips, asking him where the crew are and informing him that he is the captain now. The fact that he says he is in charge and the captain of the ship rather than either of the other two pirates shows he is the leader of the group.

Narrative Theory

Narrative - the series of events that happens in order to craft the story.

Eastenders clip analysis

I will be analyzing this clip of the Soap Opera Eastenders.
The scene presents lots of regional accents. The first man to speak has a very stereotypical Jamaican accent, and the first thing he is talking about is Mardi Gras and partying, which is something that Jamaicans are stereotypically interested in. He is also mentions steel drums, which are a Jamaican instrument and Jamaicans are often stereotyped as being able to play them or be interested in them. When the other people comment on what he is talking about, they speak in very stereotypical London accents. Also, their first comments are very cynical and they make negative comments about carnivals, whereas he is very relaxed and happy while speaking, which is another Jamaican stereotype, as is complaining and cynicism a stereotype of English people. When one of the younger characters asks the Jamaican man about the past, the older characters are surprised she has taken an interest in it. This is because they think because she is young, she conforms to the youth stereotype of not being interested in anything and just wanting to party, mess around etc. The overall tone of the scene is informal; it looks as if the people know each other well as they are making jokes with each other and not using formal vocabulary.

Hotel Babylon Clip Analysis

When the police arrive, the camera does a Dolly zoom from 0:16-0:19, in which it zooms into the secretary. This is to draw attention to her as the Police are coming to talk to her. There then follows a series of over the shoulder shots, shot from opposite perspectives, which start at 0:24  and continue until
0:48.

At first, it is over the shoulder of the receptionist so that the main thing you can see are the police officers as they are the threat in the scene. It switches to over the shoulder of one of the police officers as the Secretary is asking them what they want. This is because she is important while she is talking as she is about to set the scene of what is going to happen because they will then answer her question and start to act out the main event of the scene. It switches back to facing him over her shoulder when he shows his Police badge, as that adds a sense of threat because it reminds the viewers that he has authority. Then, from 1:01-1:04, there is a rapid panning shot as one of the characters runs around a corner. This shot helps show his panicked mood, and builds tension as we know he is going to break the news that they have to hide because the immigration officers are coming. It is followed by a similar fast panning shot of another character running for the same reason. This adds to the tension as more than one person is in a panicked mood about this situation and they are both headed to tell somebody who is in charge. When they arrive at 1:10, it shows a medium close up of what looks like a manger then as the two run into the room, it pans very quickly and there is a two of both of them standing in the doorway as they tell the Boss about what is happening. The fact that they used a two shot creates a sense of panic as they are both trying to tell her at the same time and as fast as possible.

It is taken from a medium close shot perspective so that you can see their facial expressions in detail and also part of their bodies. It then cuts to the medium shot of the manager as she quickly gets up to address the problem.

 It pans to follow her as she runs out of the room. At 1:15, you see a long shot of the kitchens as she runs in and tells them they need to hide. 

 At 1:25, you can see a long shot taken through a metal grate, which shows all of the workers running away from the kitchens and towards a room. 

The fact it is taken through a heavy duty metal grate means it creates an atmosphere of fear. 

At 1:42, there is a medium close up of one of the workers. 

This is effective for capturing the mood of characters as it shows nothing but a close up of their facial expression. Then, from 1:46-1:48 there is a rapid zoom in to the manager's face as she states "where's Ibrahim?", which is one of their workers. This creates drama and is effective in making the audience panic, as it has made us question the safety of one of the characters.

At 2:09, a lady faints, and they use a high angle shot to present her as weak and vulnerable. 

At 2:50, there is a pull focus shot, that switches focus from Ibrahim to the Immagration officers as they come out the lift to get him. This is to present them as the threat in the scene.

Then, at 2:53, it zooms into a close up shot of Ibrahim's face, which helps us feel his fear as it is showing us a close up of his reaction.

Once they leave with Ibrahim, at 3:04, it pans down to the vacuum cleaner, which reminds us that he was doing a simple task and suddenly his life has been changed.

Back in the hiding room, at 3:22 it zooms in to the manager's face after a knock is heard on the door. This is to build tension as you can see she is worried about who it might be.

From 3:38 to 3:47  are a series of tracking shots that follow Ibrahim and the immagration officers as they walk through the lobby of the hotel.  These help keep the attention on the important part of the scene, which is Ibrahim being taken away.
Then, whilst the manager and the officer are talking, there are a series of mid shots of other people in the lobby, which occur from 3:54 to 3:59.  It shows their shocked and upset expression, adding to the atmosphere of the scene.
From 4:53, there is a panning shot that pans around the canteen where the workers are eating. It stops at 5:09 to show two of the workers, one of which saved the fainted lady's life, praying over their food before they eat.

This helps show that these characters have empathy for Ibrahim, as they realize it could have been them caught. This contrasts to the other workers in the canteen, who are talking very loudly, as if nothing has happened.

Coronation Street

The show is in a realist style - the characters' actions are not dramatised. The Characters talk casually to each other, and have a generally informal way of speaking. They use slang such as "brew", meaning tea, which shows us that it is a casual environment, and this is also a term stereotypically used in the North of England, so the show presents stereotypes of Northern people. This is also shown by the fact that everyone greets each other casually in the street, which conforms to the northern stereotype of communities being closely knit and everyone knowing each other. The target audience would be 40+ as it is "nice" - there is no swearing, extreme violence, or sexual scenes, meaning it is relaxing and easy to watch. The majority of scenes in the show have lots of things scattered around the room and the scenes are not overly decorated - this could be to create a homely atmosphere so that those watching will feel as if they can relate to the characters as their houses look normal, and perhaps like the homes of the viewers. I also feel that the show would be aimed at the working classes instead of the middle and upper classes, as it mainly represents working class characters, which a working class audience could relate to. The overall tone is fairly serious, as it is mainly events in people's lives, but never overly dramatic so that you still get the "nice" atmosphere from the show, which is also presented through the informal tone. The Tone of the Piece is also presented by the non verbal language- the characters move their hands and their head when talking, which is not something you would do in a very formal conversation, indicating that the characters know each other well, and reinforcing the informal tone.

Eastenders Episode Analysis

I  am going to be analyzing this episode of the soap opera Eastenders.
The medium of Eastenders is Television and the purpose of the show is somewhere between light entertainment and Drama. This is because the Target audience of the Show is is older people, perhaps 40 and above, therefore it is set to have enough drama to be exciting, but still sets out to be a relaxing show to watch, so there is no extreme violence, sexual scenes, or strong language. The show has a mostly informal tone; the characters have informal accents, use slang, and shorten/abbreviate words, showing they know each other well. There are also age based stereotypes in the show, as one of the older characters is unsympathetic towards somebody losing their job, and says they he is lazy and should just go and get a new one, whereas the younger characters in the scene are willing to aid the person who has lost their job and do not blame him for it. The show also uses mise en scene to help create a homely mood for the older generation; in the scenes inside houses, the rooms have not been organized so they look clinical as they still have things on the tables and worktops. This is to bring the characters down to earth and make the viewers believe that they are just like them, which means they will care about the characters and feel that they can relate to them. The characters are mostly working class, which is also to make the audience feel they have a common ground with the characters, therefore, they will care about what happens to them and will continue to watch the show.

Downton Abbey Analysis

The medium of Downton Abbey is television and the purpose of the show is to entertain. The show takes the form of a Drama, specifically a period or historical Drama. The tone of the show is very formal, the characters are clearly upper class, judging by their clothes, which are extravagant, and by their well spoken accents. There is a serious tone throughout the most of the show, as the show involves serious events from 1912-1925, therefore the tone is serious to go with this. This Television show has a traditional style; the scenes are neat and clean, which is in order to make the upper class, rich setting seem realistic so that the viewer feels as if the show could be real.

First Section - The servants clearly have different accents to the house owners; this is to clearly show that they are lower class as they are less well spoken. They are also wearing a maid's outfit, which is design to separate them from the house owners, and remind that they are not in charge and do not posses any power. One of the servants is asked to do something but says she can't as she is attending "her ladyship" indicating that tending to the house owners is a priority task. When a paper boy gives one of the upper class characters a newspaper and tries to ask him something, he gets told not to ask, which is because he is in no place to ask, being a lower class than the other character. A similar thing occurs seconds after, when a servant asks a house owners why they have to dry the ink. She replies in a rude manner and says that it was so that his lordship's hands are not as black as hers are; a reminder that she is a subordinate class.
Next section is 2:30 onwards.
Second Section - This section is set in the upstairs part of the house, where the rich, upper class house owners are. We can immediately tell that they are upper class because of their clothes; lots of silk and quality looking fabrics. They are all in very formal clothes; the men in suits and the women in smart dresses. Their accents also indicate their class. They are well spoken and use longer and more advanced words than the servants; this is because they have enough money to be educated, as only those who were rich could get an education in the early 20th century. The part of the house they are in also looks very grand, as it has lots of decorative metal such as mantelpieces and banisters, and paintings in decorative frames on the walls. Unlike the downstairs, it is neat and clean. There are plant pots with well trimmed plants places neatly around, but there are not too many, reflecting the upper class characters' organized nature. When Lord Grantham asks a servant something, she replies by addressing him as "My lord" indicating he is her superior. Also, she pronounces it "m'lord", showing she is less educated in grammar than him due to her class. When he is talking to one of the female characters about the recent event of the titanic sinking, a servant comes in, and she is silent during her duration in the room as it is not her place to comment on their matters. When dismissed, she also doesn't say anything, as that would disrupt her betters' conversation.

Mise en scene - Wolf Hall

Above is an image from the period drama Wolf Hall.

This shot heavily relies on mise en scene to set the scene as being from the period. For example, the man in the the shot has a very baggy, silk shirt, with a fur overcoat, which is typical clothing of the period. He is also is wearing a flop hat, which is typical period clothing too. The silk shirt helps tell us that the characters are likely rich and belong to the upper classes, as does her dress, which also appears to be silk and has jewels around it. She is also wearing a golden necklace, and a golden bejewelled headress; which aids in creating the impression they are from the upper classes. Other parts of the scene also help create a sense of the period. Firstly, taking up the space of the table is a scroll, and on it is calligraphic writing, which are both things that pinpoint what time period this is set in. There is also an ink pot with quills in it and the chair he is sitting on looks royal and antique, which adds to the atmosphere of being in the Tudor period.